Triple H Smiled At Gorilla Position Over Finish To John Cena's Retirement Match At WWE Saturday Night's Main Event

The finish of John Cena's final match proved to be controversial at the December 13 episode of WWE Saturday Night's Main Event as the 17-time world champion tapped out while Gunther had Cena trapped in a chokehold.

The immediate reaction from fans inside Washington, DC's Capital One Arena was one of shock before they turned to anger, loudly booing WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H when he made his way to the ring for the post-match celebrations. Paul Levesque then received chants of "AEW" while he defended his booking of Cena's last match on the SNME post-show.

According to Fightful Select, Triple H was said to have had a smile on his face over the finish of Cena's final match while the Chief Content Officer was at the Gorilla position. Triple H also reacted to the boos in a similar fashion to how he did on camera.

Cena losing his final match to Gunther was reportedly what Cena and WWE wanted to do as they believed the match should have been about making a wrestler on Cena's way out.

Triple H has been WWE Chief Content Officer since the summer of 2022 and he has often been praised for his time at the top of WWE creative, but he has received criticism in 2025, particularly for the booking of the main event scene and John Cena's retirement run.